Try Something New!

So the last few days of school we've had a different round of "specials" than normal.  Our students in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades were granted a reward day.  They were allowed to choose up to 3 rewards based on their test scores.  If they met or exceeded the goal, they chose from several possible rewards such as:  Art, PE, technology, computers, free-reading, music, movie time.  The students could potentially choose PE for 3 half hours.  Some did, and they looked exhausted by the end.  I only had students choose music for 1 session (no my feelings weren't hurt), so I thought I would try something different.

I have many things in my room that I don't always know how to use.  I have an F-bar bass xylophone that I never know how to use.  I have over 50 Boomwhackers that often leave me with a headache.  I also have some 5-gallon buckets and a 50-gallon barrel that I thought I would do some Stomp-type activities as well.  With my biggest group signed up being 12, and only 30 minutes, I thought I could tolerate these noise-machines and throw together something different.

I have some Boomwhacker songs typed into a Mimio document.  While the trax was playing I just pointed to the letters and let them play away.  Buckets and drums could play on a pattern that matched the song and if they couldn't find it, they could just play on the beat or when I pointed.  The bass xylophone played whenever I pointed to the letter F.  It really added to the songs that were based in the key of F.  

We had enough time for every student to rotate through all of the instruments.  We also used the Octavator Caps on the Boomwhackers.  Adds a nice deep pitch to the songs.  Most of these students were in band so they were able to add good rhythm patterns.  These pictures show 5th graders which was a nice send-off from elementary to Middle School. 

4TH GRADE FUN

Ye Toop Doram.

This is the name of the song game we're playing in 4th and 5th grade these last days.  This is a traditional game from the Middle East.  Literally translated the words are I have the rock, and I roll the rock away.  It's in a minor key and is very easy to sing being in a different language.

The goal of the game is to not be tagged by the people passing the ball around the circle.  One person is inside the circle and are watching the 3 balls be passed around the circle during the A section.  During the bridge they count "yek, doh, seh" (1, 2, 3) and then begin rolling.  My only rule is that the ball must stay in contact with the floor.  They have the B section of the song to try and tag the person out.  Instead of repeating the section, they only have the 4 phrases to get them out.  This allows the game to move faster and more students to have a turn.

Here's a video of it in action.  With only 6 days of school left, the name of the game is Survive and playing games in music class helps the end stay in sight.

Countdown

These last weeks are a hodgepodge of activities in music class. I ask each class to make a list of some activities they want to do before summer. 

One of the big ticket items is riding noodle horses. 

Another great idea is pantyhose dancing. This sounds ridiculous but they love it. I purchased damaged pantyhose through Hanes. You just fax them that you want a box of misfits and they are yours. Each end is open so they put one on a hand and one end on a foot.  

Today I played "Happy" by Pharrell. Periodically, I stop the music and just tell them to join with someone else. The group sizes keep growing. I don't tell them how to join, they have to figure out how to make it work.

It's kind of a crazy web of 1st graders, but they are burning off mega energy.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Kindergarten began learning ta and ti-ti patterns yesterday. I have a Mimio file teaching 16-beat songs for lower elementary that are great for introducing these beginner rhythm patterns. 

We began by learning the song. I started with "Rain, Rain, Go Away" as most students would be familiar with the first half of the song. It is then followed by a beat page and we sang the song with tapping the steady beat. Then we moved on to the rhythm of the song. We learned the two basic rhythm patterns of the song and moved on to figuring out each line. After we learned the first line, we got out the Popsicle sticks and completed the rest of the song. I did the corresponding line on the Mimio and they checked their answers. When each line was correct we spoke the pattern, sang the pattern and then sang the words while pointing to the pattern. 

When done with Popsicle sticks we noticed which lines were the same and that finding those patterns were easier as we had already done them once. 

This is something I spend a great deal of time on in 1st grade so it's nice to get a head start. 

 

Bathtubs, soap suds and recorders, oh my!

Not many people can honestly say " I took home 75 recorders last night, sanitized them and gave them all a bath". When asked tomorrow what I did last night, this will be my answer. I love my job. 

We are finally at the end of our 4th grade recorder unit and it's time to get them clean and ready for next year's crew. 

The grant I received this fall from Donors Choose helped me purchase 80 recorders for my classroom. Having them year-round next year will allow me to do recorders in smaller doses rather than 2 straight months after Christmas vacation. I hope to also tie them into other areas of my curriculum and make it a gradual process. I have some brainstorming to do this summer. 😊

Pinterest has been a huge help in gaining new ideas and helpful hints when it comes to recorders. Pinterest is not just a time-sucker for me. I'll admit that when I need a good laugh, it's the first place I go, but it's not all about recipes, fashion and funny cat pictures. 

I use Pinterest as a means of personal professional development. Being the only elementary music teacher in my district, I don't have another co-teacher to bounce ideas off.  (side note) I had a student teacher this semester and I thought my head was going to explode with new ideas and just someone to talk to who knew what I was talking about. 

Pinterest isn't always the answer, but is often a springboard for how a new idea will work in my room. Recorders aren't super exciting to teach and for the non music students they can be torture. If I can turn playing a really ugly-sounding instrument into a game, or they get to throw a football for extra points for their team, then that's what I need to keep them all engaged. 

Go Recorders!!!!

The end is upon us....

The end of the year is upon us.  We are down to 17 days!  That is crazy and these days are going to fly by. Since our spring concert is over, I have the students make a list of last things they want to do.  Mallet Madenss is something they always ask for.  Mallet Madness is a book created by Artie Almedia and is great at using the Orff instruments that I love using. It integrates a lot of great kid books like "Click, Clack, Moo", "Caps For Sale", and "Rumble in the Jungle". After reading and using her book it inspired me to create my own from my own favorite books.

I also found pictures that I used of my 5th grade band. 

This is the nice, calm version of my group.  

This is what rehearsal looks like on a regular day. I still love them all.